Class Notes

ROBERT DiNAPOLI, PhD '20 (anthropology), joined Binghamton University as a postdoctoral research associate, where he studies islands, the human migrations connected with them, and the interaction of humans and the environment.

VENESSA D'ARPINO, BS '19 (general social science), an All-American sprinter at the university, was featured by KMTR-Eugene for her decision to start a career in bobsledding.

DAMIAN GUERRERO, MArch '20, has joined Washington-based Access Architecture as a job captain, where he will focus on multifamily projects.

MANJU BANGALORE, BS '18 (physics), a physicist, actor, and founder of Operation Period, a youth-led nonprofit addressing menstrual inequity through art, advocacy, and education, was a top 10 finisher in the 2020 virtual competition for Miss World America.

EMILY DARCHUK, MBA ’18 (general business), founder and CEO of Portland-based Wheyward Spirit, collaborated with Ben & Jerry’s ice cream on the flavor Dublin Mudslide.

CRYSTAL BROWN, MS '16, PhD '19 (political science), became an assistant professor in the Department of Social Science and Policy Studies at Worcester Polytechnic Institute in Massachusetts, where she studies comparative politics, international relations, human rights, immigration policies, women's rights, race and ethnicity, and politics.

MINYON MOORE, MS '20 (advertising and brand responsibility), a former point guard for UO women’s basketball, has launched Top 2, Not 2, a business and clothing line that includes oversized hoodies, sweatpants, and leggings.

JESSICA HILBERT, MBA '14 (general business), JD '14, KAREN BONNER, MBA '13 (general business), and SHANNON OLIVER, MBA '13 (general business), announced the acquisition of Red Duck Foods, their organic condiment company, by Beaverton-based BG Specialty Sales LLC.

WYATT TRUE, DMA '14 (music performance), and JANNIE WEI, DMA '13 (music performance), founders of the Delgani String Quartet, last fall participated with their group in a streaming concert for Cascadia Composers, an organization that engages communities in the creation, performance, and promotion of contemporary musical art.

JORDAN FLORES SCHWARTZ, MA '17 (arts management), was selected interim producing director for the Fonseca Theatre company in Indianapolis, Indiana, and will manage the production of shows and a fundraising campaign to create a civic engagement center.

ED REGNIER, MBA '18 (general business), was promoted to chief financial officer of Eugene-based Springfield Creamery, serving as the second CFO in 60 years for the probiotic food innovators and maker of Nancy’s probiotic foods.

YAARA TAL, BA '17 (international studies), and DEEMA YUSUF, BA '18 (religious studies), were featured in Borgen Magazine for a story about Tomorrow's Women, a summer camp in Santa Fe, New Mexico, that annually hosts Israeli Jewish and Palestinian teens for leadership training and facilitated group dialogue about growing up with conflict.

BETHANY GRACE HOWE, PhD '19 (media studies), a teacher, journalist, and parent in Lincoln City, was named Olalla Center wildfire resource navigator and will act as point person to connect people affected by the Echo Mountain wildfire with the resources, agencies, and groups that can best serve their needs.

MAX BUSCHINI, BA '17 (cinema studies), was featured in Gripped: The Climbing Magazine for his work as a filmmaker, photographer, and climber at Yosemite National Park in California.

MADISON "MADDIE" CULLEN, BS '19 (public relations), has joined Long Beach, California-based Amber Resources, a full-service petroleum distributor in Southern California started by her grandfather, Pat Cullen.

EMILY KAESTNER, BS '19 (planning, public policy and management), a graduate student in the Master of Science in Public Health program at North Carolina-based Campbell University, was featured in a story by the university about a move to enable students in the program to play collegiate sports.

DONALD CLAYTON, MS '13, PhD '17 (chemistry), joined Colorado College, where he will teach general chemistry, chemistry research, and inorganic chemistry, and in his research focus on the electrical and chemical properties of solid-state materials.

DOMINIQUE CHAPMAN, BA '19 (dance), has started Crown City Dance, a dance school in Coronado, California, that offers lessons for beginners, intermediate, and advanced dancers of all ages in person and online.

NANCY TONI BROOKS RAYL, BA '54 (English), reports she is traveling, taking classes, watching games, and staying socially involved within the confines of responsible behavior during these unprecedented times.

After graduating in 1999 as an English major, I took a job with the Symantec corporation in downtown Eugene. Working in security software was invigorating, challenging and a gratifying career for the next seventeen years. But, having floated rivers all over Oregon, Washington and Idaho for the last thirty years, the river was calling — loudly. Kayaking the Illinois river with the Outdoor Program in the ’90s, summers spent vying for just one more Rogue river trip and countless days on the McKenzie and Willamette rivers all rolled into one and revealed that the time for a career change was at hand.

Bringing my excitement of seeing our corner of Oregon from a McKenzie river drift boat to other outdoor enthusiasts became my goal for a cottage industry. Providing my guests with the history of the watersheds, the conservation efforts over the last hundred years, and educating them on the flora and fauna became business goals. While I’ve fly fished for thirty years and run a lot of whitewater, the focus for the business became eco-tourism on our Lane County waters.

As we move into the warmer days of spring and summer, Riparian Tours (https://www.ripariantours.com) will be opening the doors for another full season of tours on our home waters. During the pandemic, Covid protocols will remain in effect. More information on the website.

The University of Oregon still plays a major role in our lives including the connections with classmates in the Alumni Association, regularly attending Duck baseball games and our penchant for all things college and Duck football. Like the mallards on the river, we’ll keep swimming along with our flock and enjoying the scenery.